2009 Darwin Awards

Named in honor of Charles Darwin, the father of evolution, the Darwin Awards commemorate those who improve our gene pool by removing themselves from it.

Saw It Coming! 2009 Darwin Award Nominee Confirmed True by Darwin (27 June 2009, Pennsylvania) A severe storm damaged power lines and left 17,000 homes without electricity. Mieczyskaw Mil, 64, was one of the affected parties. His power line serviced only 17 homes and therefore was one of the last to be repaired. Seven hours after the line fell, Mieczyskaw Mil finally lost his patience. The old man had been shooed away repeatedly by firefighters who were guarding the power line. "Police and firefighters literally chased him away. We did everything we could," said Dick Martinkovic, commissioner of public safety in Sullivan County. But they were not prepared for the homeowner's sudden bold move. Frustrated with waiting, Mil emerged from his home shortly after midnight with an industrial circular saw in his hand and plastic bags on his feet. He stood in a puddle of water and attempted to saw through a 4800-volt feeder line that was dangling off the pole. He fell and became tangled in the hissing and buzzing live wire. While emergency responders waited for utility workers to shut down the power, Mil was busy being killed by continuous electrocution. The story says it all. He was repeatedly shooed away from the power line, but insisted on cutting it while standing in a puddle, and now is safely out of the gene pool. Thanks for doing our species a favor, Mil! ORIGINAL SUBMISSION and many others. DarwinAwards.com © 1994 - 2009 Submitted by: Nineteen submissions! Dave Albrecht , Mike, Brian Harnet, Gina C., Reference: Middletown Times Herald Recond, YWN Sullivan County News Team Awful? 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Great? Hate it! Love it!

Reader Frank Davis comments, "Suspicious. Industrial circular saws require power but the power was out.
Also this name is not listed in the Social Security Death Database."
Darwin thinks the story is true: she received multiple submissions.
She asks for input from readers with additional confirmation -or- evidence that it's not true.

Previous Next